Flip Bag Tutorial

When I received my copy of Melody' book, Ruby Star Wrapping, I was inspired to cut down on the wrapping waste this year. Ideas floated around but none of them seemed to stick. I needed something easy that I could do with what I already have (lots of fabric!).

Like magic, this came to me. I spent a good amount of time figuring out how to make this with all seams hidden. A few prototypes later and some hard thinking and I have it.

I've scaled mine to fit my hairdryer and brush for travel. They would also make great shoe bags (these are perfect for size 7 Converse!), snack bags (if you line them with PUL instead) and travel laundry bags for delicates. Toss a plain rice sack in it for a heating pad, or make a tiny one for headphones. I trust you can come up with many uses!

Let's get to it!

* All seam allowances are 1/4" *

Materials

- 9.5" x 26" exterior fabric

- 9.5" x 9.5" lining fabric

- 9.5" x 19" lining fabric

- 6" of 3/4" velcro (optional)

Make It!

* Optional: Velcro

Center one piece on the velcro on the exterior fabric: 3/4" down from the top, 2.25" from each side.Center the other piece of velcro on the 19" piece of lining fabric: 1.75" down from the top, 2.25" from each side.

1) Sew the two lining pieces together along one 9.5" side, leaving a 3" gap in the middle. This is where we will turn the bag at the end. (seam 1) (The velcro should not be near this seam)

2) Sew the exterior fabric to the 27.5" lining fabric that you just pieced together. Press the seam open. Top stitch with decorative stitch of your choice over the seam line. (seam 2) (The side of the lining fabric that has the velcro and the side of the exterior fabric that does not have velcro)

3) Sew the other ends of the lining and exterior fabric together, creating a tube. Turn right side out and press. Top stitch 1/8" from the edge. (seam 3)(The side of the lining fabric that does not have the velcro and the side of the exterior fabric that does have velcro)

4) Turn back inside out. This is the tricky step.

- Measure 12" from Seam 1 and mark the lining fabric (Mark 1). Measure an additional 5.5" from this point and make another mark on the lining fabric (Mark 2) (you should be about an inch away from seam 2).- Lay the tube on your cutting mat with Seam 1 lined up in a grid line and exterior fabric (wrong side out) facing up.

- Fold the tube at seam 3 so that the top stitching lays flat. Then fold the exterior fabric back towards the seam so that the fold aligns with seam 1. You may want to pin the fold to seam 1 to keep them together, although these WON'T be sewn together.- Fold the lining at Mark 1, then again at Mark 2. After these 2 folds, the exterior fabric should also be folded to be aligned with the fold at Mark 1.

- Pin the sides.

This is the pocket created on the left side of the diagram. You can see that both the top and bottom layer are folded.

5) Sew along the 2 pinned sides. Trim corners. Do not cut any folds!

6) Turn right side out. There will be a lot of turning and flipping involved, but you should be able to get it to the right place if you folded it correctly. Top stitch the opening closed, making sure not to catch any other layers.

Here is the pouch with the top flipped open. You can see that there aren't any exposed seams and that the top and bottom have a couple inches of overlap.

Ta-Dah! Now go put things in it. :)

These two bags are the same size. On the left are a pair of size 7 sparkly black Converse. On the right is a lumpy package. Can you guess what's in there?

ARGH! I get it! Thanks for the tutorial, I am wanting to make some useful bags from some groovy rip-stop nylon I got, but was thinking how to make them cheaper by not using zips, but still make them closeable, this is the perfect solution!

Hi Ali!! You are amazing and so inspiring to me! I LOVE this little bag sooo much and I really want to try and make one! It seems simple enough but for some reason I'm not able to follow the steps without confusing myself. I am a beginning sewer, so maybe that's why! Would you make a little video to show the steps for me? I would appreciate that so much!!